U.S. Department of EducationAll students — regardless of race, national origin, religion, disability or sex — deserve access to a high-quality education, from preschool through college. Throughout the last seven-and-a-half years, the Obama administration and the Department of Education have worked to safeguard the rights and protections of our students by enforcing our nation's civil rights laws and implementing regulations that prohibit discrimination and providing additional support to educators to prevent such discrimination.READ MORE

District Administration MagazineMore than 6 million students — representing 13 percent of the K12 population — missed at least 15 days of school in 2013-2014, according to a first-of-its-kind analysis from the U.S. Department of Education. "Every district has attendance data, but most haven't been calculating chronic absence," says Hedy Nai-Lin Chang, executive director of Attendance Works, a national initiative to increase student achievement by increasing attendance. "If you're looking at access and equity in schools — whether or not kids are in school so they have a chance to learn — is a huge indicator of whether we’re creating equal opportunities."READ MORE

By: Sonya Robbins Hoffman My daughter has dyslexia. Her reading difficulties were finally diagnosed this year, three months into second grade. But as many parents with children who have dyslexia find out, this is a constellation of processing and/or auditory weaknesses, and simply giving the disability a name does not make easy to treat. Nonetheless, there are certain things I wish I had known — a few lessons learned — that I hope might be helpful to other parents and educators who are struggling.READ MORE

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In an effort to enhance the overall content of THE LD SOURCE, we'd like to include peer-written articles in future editions. As a member of LDA and/or reader of THE LD SOURCE, your knowledge of learning disabilities and related issues lends itself to unprecedented expertise. And we're hoping you'll share this expertise with your peers through well-written commentary. Because of the digital format, there's no word or graphical limit. Our group of talented editors can help with final edits. If you're interested in participating, please contact Ronnie Richard to discuss logistics.

THE JournalTeachers are less stressed about the Common Core or about teacher accountability requirements this year than they were last year. And roughly the same high number of educators who were using some kind of digital material in their work last year are continuing to do so in 2016. But use tends to be uneven when examined by years in the job.READ MORE

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District Administration MagazineMore than five years after many states implemented Common Core, the impact on student achievement remains unclear — though some states show small academic gains, with persistent achievement gaps. "Common Core is alive and well," says Adam Ezring, policy director of the Collaborative For Student Success, a nonprofit that supports use of the standards. "While it's still too early to know the full impact of the standards, we've seen some promising results from early adopters." More than 40 states have Common Core or very similar standards in place, he adds.READ MORE

ADDitude MagazineStudents with ADHD learn differently. This presents a challenge and an opportunity — for more visual, collaborative, interactive, positive lesson plans. Not to mention a life-changing relationship with the students who struggle at school.READ MORE

Edutopia (commentary)Manifesting the magic of compassion within the four walls of your classroom may not always be an easy task, but it's a darn worthy one. That being said, we only can give what we have. Reflect on yourself for a second: Where are you with compassion for yourself? When was the last time you checked that barometer?READ MORE

Education DIVEAbout 2,000 elementary and middle school students in Pittsburgh Public Schools are getting 90 minutes of reading and 90 minutes of math instruction every morning. But they don't call it school. They call it camp. And even though these students' afternoons are spent in enrichment activities like fencing, West African dance, and filmmaking, some still say their favorite parts of the district's Summer Dreamers Academy is the reading or the math classes in the morning. That's a point of pride for Christine Cray, director of student services reform.READ MORE

By: Brian Stack The Washington Post's Moriah Balingit and Donna St. George recently opened up a large debate by asking a simple question: Is it becoming too hard to fail? Their article discussed how schools are shifting toward no-zero grading policies as a way to focus a student's grade on what they know and are able to do rather than to use grades as a means to motivate or punish students. Failure is a part of life, but failure should be an opportunity for further learning and improvement.READ MORE

Edutopia (commentary)Students need explicit instruction and opportunities to practice the flexible thinking that will make the most of their brains' fertile adolescent development stage. The unique anatomy and chemistry of this transitional state comprises increased dopamine receptors and accelerated neuroplasticity. This primes their brains with an accelerated drive for exploration, passion for things of high interest, and boosted willingness to exert effort and push envelopes when so inspired. The opportunities that you provide will give them greater access to develop these skillsets for expanded perspectives, wider outlooks, greater creativity, willing collaboration, and inspired innovation.READ MORE

The Hechinger ReportWhy don't American students really get math? Because their elementary school teachers don’t either, says Marc Tucker, president of the National Center on Education and the Economy, a policy institute that studies what America can learn from the world's best-performing education systems. Tucker describes a vicious cycle. "We are mainly recruiting teacher candidates from the bottom half of the kids who go to college," said Tucker.READ MORE

MindShiftStanford psychologist Carol Dweck, along with other education researchers interested in growth mindset, have done numerous studies showing that when students believe their intelligence can grow and change with effort, they perform better on academic tests. These findings have sparked interest and debate about how to encourage a growth mindset in students both at home and at school.READ MORE

District Administration MagazineFor a few weeks in early 2016, a computer program helped educators teach the finer points of writing to students in a Fort Worth ISD high school. Like so many schools nationwide, R.L. Paschal High School — under pressure from new state standards — has been working hard to improve writing instruction so students can express their ideas and share information fluently. And as in many schools, Paschal educators feel overwhelmed by the challenge. Technology can help administrators bridge the gap between the need for high-level writing instruction and the reality that many teachers don't feel prepared to teach the skill.READ MORE